Luxury yacht stolen from Palma found in Turkey

A yacht worth 3.5 million euros was stolen in Palma in April and has been found in Turkey by Turkish police.

The Directorate General of the Armed Institute reported on Saturday that the yacht was first detected in the Port of Corinth in Greece and later in Güllük in Turkey. The Turkish authorities were notified that the stolen yacht was in their jurisdiction and four people, three Turkish nationals and one Russian national, were arrested when the police boarded the boat.

The four men were carrying false documents and had changed the name, registration and flag of the vessel making it difficult to identify them.

Once in the port of Palma, the yacht was inspected by investigators who found incriminating evidence as well as extensive damage in the interior. In addition, 20,000 euros of nautical equipment was missing.

Three other people, of Spanish, German and Portuguese nationality, were arrested or investigated in Mallorca, in addition to a fourth in Torrevieja (Alicante), of Hungarian nationality.

The initial investigation has uncovered that the group would choose luxury boats from different ports of the Balearic Islands and sell them on for a much lower price.

The Guardia Civil have stated that international cooperation was essential during this operation and that the investigation is still open and new arrests could still be made.